Think back to any sci-fi adventure flick you’ve ever seen — from Star Wars to I, Robot — to easily envision an environment populated by people working seamlessly with an assortment of drones and droids that willingly aid, assist and even protect their human counterparts. Would you believe this seemingly futuristic vision is on the verge of being realized onboard the flight decks of aircraft carriers and other air-capable ships currently serving in the U.S. Navy’s fleet?

Within the Artificial Intelligence and Robotics area of the NAVAIR Aircraft Platform Interface Laboratory, scientists and engineers are using what we think of as industrial light and magic — namely, artificial neural networks, intelligent data agents ... CLICK